Abstract
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>This article provides a brief introduction to English for Science and Technology (EST) as a language teaching approach. It looks briefly at factors to be considered in designing an EST course. These factors include how to analyze what language and literacy the EST students that are being taught need. A further consideration is the design of an EST course; the article stresses the importance of basing the teaching design on the content and genres of the students' science and technology discipline. Assessment in EST and EST materials design are then introduced, with stress placed on the need for both to be authentic to the learners' disciplines and specific to learner needs. As students taking EST courses are typically undergraduate students, the article then considers the undergraduate genres that are likely to be included in an EST course, including laboratory report, design report, and design presentation. Science and technology language as a variety is then discussed, noting how written science language promotes an impression of objectivity and reliability. Some key linguistic features used to achieve this, including use of the passive voice, sparing use of personal pronouns, and stance features, are then discussed. The article briefly mentions how EST teachers can approach the teaching of these genres and linguistic features.</jats:p>